Quota? What quota?

[FJRider]

In several surveys 90% of drivers consider themselves to be better drivers than the average
Anecdotal experience would suggest the above opinions are grossly incorrect. Then there is the question of maths

ANYTHING DB says ... could be described as gross or incorrect ... often / usually both ...

[Toaster]

As a taxpayer and road-user I would expect police to provide a return for the funding they receive for road specific outputs.

The alternative is less police due to reduced funding to provide those services like HP or ACC Stop Buses.

Every employee, no matter where they work, are required to pull their weight and meet their output obligations as specified by their employer.

I for one appreciate the work they do to contribute to safer roads for me to enjoy and my family to travel on and hopefully have a better chance of getting home safe.

[rastuscat]

[QUOTE=Toaster;1130043161]As a taxpayer and road-user I would expect police to provide a return for the funding they receive for road specific outputs.[QUOTE]

Police receive approximately 21% of their annual funding through the gubbermint land transport fund.

Police spend less than 21% of their total funding on road policing.

Ergo, land transpoprt funding is subsidising the police functions, and if removed, would see a marked decrease in overall policing, not just road policing.

So there.

[Smifffy]

[QUOTE=rastuscat;1130043216][QUOTE=Toaster;1130043161]As a taxpayer and road-user I would expect police to provide a return for the funding they receive for road specific outputs.

Police receive approximately 21% of their annual funding through the gubbermint land transport fund.

Police spend less than 21% of their total funding on road policing.

Ergo, land transpoprt funding is subsidising the police functions, and if removed, would see a marked decrease in overall policing, not just road policing.

So there.

But the question is:

"What was the objective of the officer concerned during his 'chat' with the OP?"

To scare her off the road?

Once he had ascertained that she wasn't intoxicated/impaired herself, had a valid licence, wof & reg, then what further value was he really adding, other than to perpetuate the public view that some members of the force are just nutters?

I actually recently had an interaction with what I consider to be a rude and arrogant cop too. I wasn't speeding though, I was standing on my doorstep after opening the door to an officer who was seeking my assistance. I was happy to help him out as much as I could, but for the life of me I still cant work out why he would need my name & dob.

[SPman]

As a taxpayer and road-user I would expect police to provide a return for the funding they receive for road specific outputs.

Every employee, no matter where they work, are required to pull their weight and meet their output obligations as specified by their employer.

I for one appreciate the work they do to contribute to safer roads for me to enjoy and my family to travel on and hopefully have a better chance of getting home safe.

Provide a return for funding! Fuck me, do something to provide a database recordable return which can have money charged against it like a lawyers office, or actually be out there and ensure traffic flows freely with minimal accidents and minimal interference from predatory egocentric, authoritarian bully boys!
It's about time people knew the difference between those functions of government which are involved with monetary income (Tax, etc), and those which are meant to be involved with the smooth running of a society, which has nothing to do with "paying it's way"!

I assume you where taking the piss..........if not.......oh dear..........

[oldrider]

As a taxpayer and road-user I would expect police to provide a return for the funding they receive for road specific outputs.

The alternative is less police due to reduced funding to provide those services like HP or ACC Stop Buses.

Every employee, no matter where they work, are required to pull their weight and meet their output obligations as specified by their employer.

I for one appreciate the work they do to contribute to safer roads for me to enjoy and my family to travel on and hopefully have a better chance of getting home safe.

My only considered response to that is:

If it is so bad out there with an under performing police management team, what would it be like without a police force at all?

I shudder to think!

Perhaps we (NZ) have an under performing police force simply because we are an under performing general public!

(pot, kettle, pot, kettle, monkey see, monkey do!))

[red mermaid]

Thats because you may not have any training in investigative interviewing.

If required later in court, he can now state he spoke to a person who gave his details as such and such, and thereby identify you reasonably clearly.

I actually recently had an interaction with what I consider to be a rude and arrogant cop too. I wasn't speeding though, I was standing on my doorstep after opening the door to an officer who was seeking my assistance. I was happy to help him out as much as I could, but for the life of me I still cant work out why he would need my name & dob.

[Laava]

If a traffic cop in NZ can't hand out 30 proper tickets in a day they should be sacked. We've all seen the shit out there that isn't enforced. Give me a mufti car for a week and I'd break all records.

That wasn't you that pulled me in a transition from 50-80km down Onerahi hill and ticketed me for 66 was it? Fuckin unfriendly nit-picking-quota filling bitch!

[Berries]

Unlikely. With that attitude I would have tasered you, impounded the bike and had a Police dog shit in your mouth.

[Laava]

Fuck! It was you!

[YellowDog]

If a traffic cop in NZ can't hand out 30 proper tickets in a day they should be sacked. We've all seen the shit out there that isn't enforced. Give me a mufti car for a week and I'd break all records.

There in lies the problem.

It seems that cops are being pressurised into going after the low hanging fruit by harrassing safe road users, whom may be driving with all due care and attention to others, and letting all the crap driving get away, 'cos it takes more effort and won't help them easily make their quotas.

Hence NZ is turning into a Police state with young cops thinking their gods gift in exercising their new found power and authority, with very little discretion or experience. Such power for the young and inexperienced is not a good thing. I'm sure the training course is very good, but clearly it is not enough. Maybe the Police should only allow grownups to do such work?

It is quite offencive having a 20 year old with a couple years of driving experience under his/her belt telling you what a bad road user you are. Some seem to think they are qualified to do such work.

Why not focus on bad and dangerous drivers rather than the trivia many cops go after to make up their numbers. We see lots of really bad stuff on the road. Mr Plod doesn't get them because he's too busy chasing the easy low hanging fruit.

No offence intended to anyone at all, however this is my personal observation of road policing around Auckland.

[quazimoto]

I was out delivering the other day, up one road and down the other side. An unmarked cop car pulled 6 separate vehicles over on that same streatch of road in the space of about 15 minutes.

How to make friends and influence people

2.5mins per car, now thats efficieny.

[YellowDog]

2.5mins per car, now thats efficieny.

I may have over cooked that one. 20 minutes each way is more likely.

[rastuscat]

There in lies the problem. It seems that cops are being pressurised into going after the low hanging fruit by harrassing safe road users, whom may be driving with all due care and attention to others............................Why not focus on bad and dangerous drivers rather than the trivia many cops go after to make up their numbers. We see lots of really bad stuff on the road. Mr Plod doesn't get them because he's too busy chasing the easy low hanging fruit.

Are you the low hanging fruit?

You got it in one. The problem with a quota is that it encourages blind compliance, wherein the troops focus on ticket numbers instead of ticket quality.

If I told my troops that they had to write 20 tickets each day, they'd go out and write the 20 easiest tickets they could find. It's human nature. If there's a target, people try to hit it.

What matters is the quality of work. For the record, there are measures of the category of tickets people write. Per example, I can check how many seatbelt tickets, or how many stop sign tickets my troops write. I could also check how many vehicle licensing tickets they write, but at my level, nobody ever does that check. It's basically by-catch, you know, the ones you get when you are looking for other ones. Like fishing. Stop enough people for breath testing, evenetually you'll find someone with an expired license label.

So, please moan about the real issue, the quality of the work. You're missing the point by grizzling about the quantity.

That said, I regard lots of things as quality that maybe you don't. Red lights, quality. No question. Orange lights, huge deterrent factor, quality. Seatbelts, quality.

Turning into the wrong lane? Depends. If someone gets cut off, quality. If not, maybe not. It's quite subjective. A purest would say that turning into the wrong lane is a fundamental driving error that pisses people off, others would say that if nobody else is around, what harm is done? Not indicating is the same. It cheeses us all off, but people who don't indicate either think they did, or don't think it's worth a $150 ticket.

Thing is, driving is a habit. If we see someone do something dumb and nobody is effected, should we ignore it? I think not, as it we allow a driving error to become habit, one day that habit will take someone out.

Just my frustrated thoughts.

Donuts. So there.

[Gremlin]

Turning into the wrong lane? Depends. If someone gets cut off, quality. If not, maybe not. It's quite subjective. A purest would say that turning into the wrong lane is a fundamental driving error that pisses people off, others would say that if nobody else is around, what harm is done? Not indicating is the same. It cheeses us all off, but people who don't indicate either think they did, or don't think it's worth a $150 ticket.

Taking it off on a tangent... I do believe that's how we get the bad driving. Oh, there's no-one around, I don't need to indicate. That progresses over time to, oh, there's no-one in my immediate vicinity, no need to indicate (perhaps a blind spot catches them out now and then). Eventually turns into the habit of not bothering to indicate.

Gets as far as I almost got taken out when a guy didn't indicate. Next light, I got off the bike and spoke to him. Of course, he said he didn't see me, and I replied, it doesn't matter, just indicate, so you let others know your intentions. Right after the light, he failed to indicate a lane change.

Good luck with your crusade.

Chocolate mud cake. Yum.